With lush art by NYT Best Illustrated recipient Violeta Lopiz, a picture book about a boy and his larger-than-life immigrant grandfather, who shares with him the kind of learning that's not taught in classrooms. At six years old, the child-narrator of this picture book loves nothing more than spending time with his grandpa, Luis-especially in his marvelous garden, where green beans reach as high as the sky. Luis's garden is where the little boy practices reading and writing. But just as importantly, it's also where he learns wonderful things from Luis, like the names of all the birds in the trees and new expressions that are so much fun to say. Luis's playful vocabulary is as vibrant and full of life as his garden, and phrases that are particular to his way of talking, like "at the drop of a cat" (which means right away), are soon adapted into the little boy's lexicon, too. A talented cook, artist, and gardener, Luis has much wisdom to impart and many experiences to share with his grandson-even though, as a war refugee, he never went to school himself and never learned to read and write. A loving testament to the intergenerational transmission of knowledge and the breathtaking beauty of the natural world, illustrated with evocative, multilayered art by Violeta Lopiz.

A New York Times Best Children's Book of 2021 "In this gloriously unruly feminist fable, The True Story of a Mouse Who Never Asked for It explores the power of art-making, the tedium of the domestic, and the dangers of heteronormativity, all within beautiful pictures and tender words. I was enchanted by the pairing of graphic illustration and tight prose on every page. It is luminous and evocative from start to finish." -Alisson Woods, author of Being Lolita Folklorist Ana Cristina Herreros and visionary illustrator Violeta Lopiz spin a deeply feminist retelling of an old Spanish folktale in The True Story of a Mouse Who Never Asked for It. Through rhythmic text, highly conceptual illustrations, and a final visual narrative that is silent but revelatory, this YA picture book builds from deceptive simplicity to an explosive end. The story begins with a mouse, very neat and hard-working, who makes herself a home. In disbelief that she has a house but isn't a wife, suitors show up uninvited, each asking for her hand. She turns everyone down... until a pack of tiny kittens arrive, and she agrees to marry the smallest and most defenseless of the bunch. But it does every mouse well to remember that a kitten always grows up to be a cat. Today, the most commonly told version of this popular folktale serves as a warning, scaring girls to choose good men to marry by reminding them that the cat will always devour the mouse. But this story is rooted in the non-normative, non-performative original version, before it became a cautionary tale. Here, by contrast, the story tells of the pain and harm that come from falling prey to situations beyond one's control. It is also a powerful story of reclaiming one's selfhood.